11.13.2011

Blog Explanation

So this began as a sidenote: my blog has run sports heavy for a while due to my inability to stay motivated to review educational websites. I have over 60 sites to review and I find myself just reading about football instead. Hopefully my readers do not mind the article (both sports and news) heavy posts. It is interesting to watch the interest wane in certain aspects during times of heavy work. I am investing more time in created individualized differentiated assignments for my students utilizing technology but I am finding less time to post on my blog. My readership numbers have never been strong - even my closest friends rarely read all my posts but the creative outlet that is this blog is more information gathering. I look forward to eventually continuing my work finding educational sites but also more clearly articulating my thoughts on a variety of topics. That is why this is "Relatively Random Teacher Thoughts."

Followers

About Me

I have been teaching 7th grade at Elm Place Middle School in Highland Park since 2007. I grew up in the Chicagoland Area and decided to come back to the city after I graduated from Denison University in Granville, Ohio. My wife and I are expecting our first child this spring.

I love teaching and I am always brainstorming ways to get my students to think more critically and independently. That is why I first became interested in education technology; I wanted to find the best ways to engage my students in their learning.

In 2011, my colleague Pete and I applied for a technology grant. We thought 1:1 mobile devices would help us offer our students a more individualized learning experience. The more we used the devices, the more we found ourselves searching for the latest apps and websites to use in our classrooms. However, each new tool we found would require a new login and password, and would demand another day of teaching our students how to use a new interface. As a result, Pete and I continually discussed ways we could integrate technology into our classrooms more efficiently. That is how Otus began – a 1:1 mobile learning environment that combines the best features from around the web together in one easy-to-use location, with one login and one password. As teachers, our desire is to make learning in the classroom more efficient and effective for teachers and students.